The Internet offers another opportunity for small businesses to make a big splash. With a lot of competition online, however, you’ll want to make sure you do everything you can to stand out.
Great Customer Support
Your customer support staff may well be the first point of interaction customers have with your company. You won’t get a second chance at a first impression, so your customer support needs to be excellent. This is doubly true given the fact that, if a customer is contacting your customer support, they’ve probably already had a problem with or have a question about a product or service. If you don’t answer them quickly and clearly, their frustration will grow, as will your poor reputation via poor reviews. Make sure you have FAQ pages and customer support helplines and emails clearly displayed, and that customers are answered ASAP.
Command Your Niche
While diversification can be good for growing your brand, at its foundation you need to have a mastery of your niche. Whatever your particular specialty or customer base may be, make sure you are one of the industry leaders. Focus on providing top-level service here, and direct traffic to your site with SEO targeting keywords related to your niche.
A Multiplatform Approach
Today, it’s possible and, increasingly, probable to come across different companies on different platforms. Having a good website, solid Facebook page, engaging Instagram account, or active YouTube channel isn’t enough anymore – you need all of them, and they should all link to and post content from one another. That way, no matter where someone learns about and interacts with your company, they are introduced to your content and helpful links to help convert sales.
Teamwork Makes the Dream Work
“No man is an island,” John Donne tells us, and nowhere is that truer than the online archipelago. Handling all of those platforms yourself and optimizing your SEO and looking after your customer support staff and doing whatever else is necessary to make your company run is simply too much. What’s more, even if you could wear all of these hats, would you do so as well as dedicated experts could? Probably not. Hire specialists to oversee and put all their efforts and talents into these and other specific departments of your business.
Be True to Your Brand
“Sellout” has always been a massive blackmark in the business world, and that’s especially true among younger consumers. Millennials and Gen Z, on average, greatly value authenticity in marketing. YouTubers and other influencers branded as “selling out” can see their fan bases turn on them quickly. Be honest, be authentic, and above all, be true to your brand and your user base.
Heeding these tips can help prime your small business for bigger and better things online.